How to Print a Thick Card on an Inkjet Printer

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When you want to send a customized greeting card or invitation to your clients, you don't need to go to professional printer to create them. Your computer and printer give you the tools you need to create and print almost any design on card stock. Card stock, a cross between thick paper and thin cardboard, gives your printed projects a professional look and feel. Most printers are capable of printing on card stock if you adjust a few settings first.

Determine whether your printer can print on heavy card stock. Not all printers have this capability. Check the printer's packaging or instruction manual for this information.

Check your printer's supported minimum and maximum paper size guidelines before you begin your project. Buy card stock that will fit inside your printer. If the paper isn't the right size, it may tear or get jammed in the machine.

Purchase printer card stock that has a smooth, matte or vellum surface. Avoid using slick or glossy card stock, as ink may have trouble adhering to it. If you plan to print on both sides of the paper, buy card stock designed for that purpose.

Open your printer and check the feed rollers before printing. Remove any paper debris or dried ink from the rollers. This will lessen the chance of a jam or error while printing.

Place five to 10 sheets of card stock in your printer's main paper tray. If you put more than this, you may have difficulty feeding the paper through the printer. If the paper is extra-thick, you might need to put one sheet of it into the tray at a time.

Click Start, then "Devices and Printers." Double-click your printer to open its control panel. Look for and double-click an option such as "Adjust print settings," "Paper settings" or "Print options."

Select the paper size that matches the card stock you want to use. If none of the preset paper sizes matches your card stock, enter a custom width and height instead. If you don't set the paper size to match your card stock, the document won't print correctly.

Change the orientation in the settings menu to either Portrait or Landscape depending on how you want the card to appear. The Portrait setting prints vertically while the Landscape setting prints horizontally.

Print the graphics or text on the interior of the card first if you want to print on both sides of the card. This will prevent scratching on the other side of the card.

Print the card so that the photo or image on it comes out of the printer first to prevent smudging.

Allow the printed card stock to dry before folding it or putting it in an envelope.